Committee of Safety (American Revolution)

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Many Committees of Safety were established throughout Colonial America at the start of the American Revolution. These committees started to appear in the 1760s as means to discuss the concerns of the time, and often consisted of every male adult in the community. The local militias were usually under the control of the committees, which in turn sent representatives to county and colony-level assemblies to represent their local interests.

Committees of Safety, formed before and during the Revolutionary War, to keep watch of and act upon events pertaining to the public welfare. They were sometimes possessed of almost supreme executive power, delegated to them by the people. Massachusetts took the lead in the appointment of a committee of safety so early as the autumn of 1774, of which John Hancock was chairman. It was given power to call out the militia, provide means of defense — in a word, provide many of the duties of a provisional government. Other colonies appointed committees of safety. One was appointed in the city of New York, composed of the leading citizens. In the spring of 1778, the New York state legislature abolished all committees in New York in favor of "Commissioners of Conspiracy".

These committees were in constant communication with the committees of correspondence.

[edit] References

• Harper's Encyclopædia of United States History (1905)

[edit] See also

• Committee of Correspondence
• Committee of Observation, also known as, Committee of Sixty
• Provincial Congress